(Isuzu came into the U.S. in '81 selling only cars and found the
market pretty tough, says Matt Hagin. Bob Hagin remembers too and would
like to forget them since he had to work on a couple of I-Mark diesels.)

MATT - When Isuzu decided to stop importing passenger cars in '93
and instead elected to concentrate on its trio of sport/utility vehicles
and its pickup, it was either good luck or good planning or both. That
was at a time when the SUV market really took off and Isuzu could
capitalize on the fact that it only sold rugged go-anywhere machines and
didn't mess around with "sissy" sedans and coupes. Its Rodeo is by far
the best-seller of the Isuzu line and it's been knocking out upwards of
60,000 units annually for the past four or five years. It's a
manufacturer that's put all its eggs in one basket and by doing so,
Isuzu has managed to remain a heavy hitter in its own bailiwick.

BOB - And it has done it pretty much on its own terms. The '00 Amigo
is as suave and sophisticated as any of its competitors. By staying on
track, the company has remained true to its basic credo of being at home
off the road while still being comfortable transporting the family
around town or going to the opera. The exterior design got a little out
of control last year, but Isuzu designers have buffed it up a bit with a
redesigned nose and some other external changes. Our LSE model even has
an "aerodynamic" roof rack that actually helps lower its coefficient of
drag and boost the fuel mileage a bit. Most experienced SUV users like
having the spare tire mounted on the rear door, while first-timers
prefer to have it tucked away under the floor. To satisfy both factions,
the Rodeo can be had with either type of spare mounting. The folks at
Isuzu are very accommodating. The seats up front have been changed a bit
and although they don't form-fit like a sportscar, they have plenty of
side bolstering so they hold you in well.

MATT - Mechanically, the "fancier" Rodeo like the one we had hasn't
changed much since last year. The LSE still uses an all-aluminum V6
with twin overhead cams and this year it puts out 205 horses and 214
pound-feet of torque. This is up a bit due to some tweaking Isuzu
engineers did with the intake and exhaust manifolds. I was surprised to
find that the engine utilizes mechanical adjustment of the 24 valves and
I hope the sales people impresses buyers with how important it is to
follow the adjustment schedule. If they tighten up beyond specs, they
can burn a valve. Our LSE can only be had with a four-speed automatic
transmission, but a five-speed stick is available on the lower two
models, the S and the LS. There's also a 2.2-liter four-banger
available. It's pretty exotic in its own right, but a little light on
power for a rig that weighs in at 4000 pounds.

BOB - Since lots of SUV buyers never intend to go off road, the
Amigo is also available in two-wheel drive. Our top-line version sported
a self-adjusting suspension system that takes in information from a
bunch of sensors and instantly trims the shock absorbers to compensate
for almost any road condition. The Amigo is a no-kidding truck, however,
with a full-frame chassis and A-arm front suspension. The truck axle in
back has a neat 5-link suspension with coil springs which is very
sophisticated for an SUV. The four-wheel drive system can be engaged at
speed by popping a dash-mounted button, but the low-range drive system
has to be engaged by using a console-mounted lever. And there's all
kinds of override systems to keeps the driver from inadvertently
shredding the gearbox or transfer case. Our tester also had a limited
slip differential in back, just in case the Rodeo gets stuck in the snow
or mud.

MATT - It's also got disc brakes in back, unlike the four-cylinder
model, and they've all got an anti-lock braking system. The Amigo
doesn't have much towing capacity at 1500 pounds, so you wouldn't be
able to tow a vacation trailer that was very big.

BOB - That wouldn't bother your mother and me, Matt. On a serious
vacation, we consider "roughing it" staying at a hotel that doesn't have
a floor show in the main dining room.

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